Easy Pieces
by Fayet
Summary: A collection of one-shots, snapshots, drabbles.. everything short and "easy". All Severus centred. Some funny, some crack, some dark, some pure angst. Mild-slash  or not , character death  or not , OC  or not , PWP  or not . Not cannon comp.
1. First Things First

**Easy Pieces**

**First things first  
**

Somehow I never manage to finish anything longer than three chapters. I know it's bad, and I know my readers (probably) hate me for doing that, but my true home simply is where everything is short and sweet.

And here's now a home for everything short, and, sometimes, sweet. This is a collection of my short stories..

..and although we'll kick this off with something as close to a „crack" fic as anything I'll every write, this might get dark. Really dark.

Because, you know, that's how I roll..

Beware: I might not update this thing for a while. Plot bunnies take their time to come along, and then take some more time to get written down, and then the editing must be done.. you know. But stay tuned! This will be continued.

21.1.2011 - Fayet

DISCLAIMER:

In the following stories I'll be using characters that belong to J.K.R.. Characters not from the books mostly belong to me. I do not earn a dime from this, sadly, and don't like stealing. And I've got nothing to do with all the official Harry Potter stuff, of course.. because if I did, you could bet I wouldn't be living in my ghetto flat anymore. Just sayn'.


	2. You know I'm bad

Characters: SS, SB

Warnings: None

Genre: Just-plain-crack

* * *

**You know I'm bad**

"Damn you, Snape! Why is it always you?"

Sirius was very angry, and his voice echoed through the empty hallway. The man before him simply smirked.

"If you'd care to express what actually is bothering you, dog, I'd be able to ease your suffering."

Sirius snorted. "You know what I'm talking about, greasy bat!" He spat the last words out.

Severus didn't change the subject, or the expression of his face.

"And?"

Furious Sirius took a step closer.

"What is it that you have, for Merlin's sake? What?"

A sarcastic smile forced it's way onto the potion master's thin lips.

"Oh, you're talking about that.."

He gestured with his left hand, not bothering to produce his wand, simply waving in the air before him. An image of a stack of gallons appeared.

"Is it because I've got money to my name?"

He pondered the image. "No." The image disappeared and a vision of a bubbling cauldron took its place.

"Might it be because I'm holding two academic titles and am a leading researcher in my field?"He knitted his brows. Sirius felt a bit fidgety. He had expected Snape to be less.. honest?

The cauldron vanished and suddenly the air around Sirius felt electrified.

"Is it because I'm a powerful wizard?"

The feeling vanished when Severus shook his head.

"No. I fear I can't help you. Good day."

With that he turned around and stalked away.

Sirius was annoyed. A lot. "What? Wait!"

Severus stopped dead in his tracks, and turned around. Then he snapped his fingers. "I know it!"

"You, wait, what?"

Severus smirked. "The answer to your question. It's, in fact very easy if you ponder it for a short while."

Sirius stared back, dumbfounded.

"They just always like the bad guy. Sorry, dog."

And with that Severus continued his way down the hallway, leaving behind Sirius with his mouth hanging half-open. The man was stunned, annoyed, and a bit surprised at the glowing heat his ears suddenly started to radiate...

* * *

20.01.2011


	3. Calm

Genre: Hurt/Comfort, mild Angst

Characters: Severus, Poppy

Rating: hum.. PG13? What is that called again now?

Warnings: none

* * *

**Calm**

Poppy had been up late in the Hospital Wing, checking her stores and arranging the order for new vials and sheets, when a soft knock disturbed her work and Severus Snape entered without a greeting, as it was his habit.

He sat down on the bed next to the door, watching her intently. Leaving her desk and coming closer to talk to him she took a quick inventory of his appearance, and was shocked. He was always painfully pale, but now he looked simply exhausted. She wasn't sure if he still had enough strenght to keep the usual appearance charms that he had woven around his person during time up, but she was nearly certain that he couldn't, and had simply let them fall down. It wasn't term time, so no students were around, and the faculty was well aware of his obligations towards the order - although most did know nothing about the price he paid for them. The rings beneath his eyes were so dark they had almost the exact same colour of his black eyes, the extreme thinness of his face made his cheekbones stand out almost unaturally, and pronounced his sharp nose even more. But what scared her most was the slight tremor running through his body, still visible underneath amounts of black cloth, and the soft shaking of his hands. They were all close to edge these days, but Severus looked like he was already on the way down.

"Tell me, what can I do for you?"

Instead of repleying immediately he rubbed his eyes, and sighed softly. Then he watched her closely.

"Do you have Quietanrootextract in your stores?"

Poppy was taken aback. "No. I don't have to explain to a potionsmaster how powerful a narcoticum Quietanrootextract is, and how dangerous. It's only used in the most hopeless circumstances, when healing seems nearly impossible, and it's only about easing untorable pain. Of course I wouldn't have it in stock here! Technically only St. Mungos is using it, and I'd immeadiately transfer any patient needing it - why are you asking?"

He smiled softly, closed his eyes for a second, and looked at her again.

"But you know how to work with it?"

In the back of her mind soft panic started to grow and she took another good look at him. Why was he asking such questions? "I was trained in the Trauma and First Urgent Care Unit at St. Mungos, and Merlin knows how often some poor being was only inches away from death and just needed something to give relief from the intense pain they were in.. Or when accident victims came on, or during the first Voldemort wars.. yes, I've had my share of injecting Quietanrootextract."

He crooked his head, produced a small vial with a whitish liquid and handed it to her.

"Then I don't have to tell how to do it."

Her eyes widened in shock. "Merlin's bones - how did you get your hands on this? Even as a potionsmaster you have no right to buy this legally.."

"Silly question, Poppy. I got my ways to get my hands on things I want and need. Don't forget what I'm doing. Don't forget what I am."

Of course she knew. She knew all about his suffering, had patched him back together so many times. She knew what Voldemort-the-bitch did to his followers, and she always felt the urgent need to kill that bastard of a dark wizard very slowly when she once again washed bloodied sheets. Albus and her were the ones keeping Severus going, again and again, but Poppy knew how close he really was to dying so often. How his body was close to compeletely breaking down. How far they had already pushed him.  
She took the vial and stared at the liquid. It looked exactly like Quietanrootextract, but she had never seen so much of it. And not handed around easily like that.

"This could kill.. and so quickly."

He nodded. "Which is why I'm here. I can't take it on my own."

Then she finally undestood what exactly he wanted from her, and why he had asked the questions.

"Oh, no, no, no. I can't do that. I can't - how bad is your pain? How much Pitanjuice have you taken today? Why, for Merlin's sake, didn't you come earlier?"

He rubbed is temples, averted his eyes, and softly sighed again. "2 mg Pitanextract, every day, since five days. It doesn't help. Nothing helps anymore. Can't go on like this. I need a night of sleep without pain, Poppy, just once."

Poppy did the math, and felt her heart beat faster. "2 mg Pitanextract every day - since five days? You should be dead by now. Or you got a really high tolerance for that stuff. Did you eat anything or is your stomach already..?" Without asking for his consent she produced her wand and started to take his stats. He sat silently, not moving, hiding his shaking hands in his robes. He could not hide the fact that his whole body was still trembling.

Poppy was aghast when she was done.

"How can you stand, walk or even sit?"

He shrugged. "High tolerance for pain."

Again she eyed the white liquid. "Where is that from? Is it clean? Quietanroot can easily kill if not completely clean, even when it's admistered by a professional"

"It's clean, I've run a few tests. It works. If I wanted to kill myself I would have done so yesterday."

Poppy nodded. "Undress, lie down."

He let his head hang down in relief for a second. "You're going to do it?"

She was already turning around to arrange a sirynge and a few vials. "Yes, but only once. You know how dangerous it is. Unexperienced healers have killed with it unintentionally. People easily get addicted. I need to constantly observe your heart-beat - you're so damn thin I don't even know how to properly dose it. Usually I wouldn't give it to someone in your physical state, but.. you need sleep. Your stats are horrific. Take off those damn amounts of black cloth - how can you wear that much stuff?"

When she turned around again Severus had arranged himself on the bed, boots off, only in his shirt - white, suprisingly - with the cuffs rolled up. A chair next to the bed was occupied by a large pile of thick, heavy black fabric. Poppy pulled up a second chair and a small table, and gave him the first vial. "Drink that", she ordered, and without asking questions he chucked the liquid down. "It'll give you some nutrients while you're out. Are you comfortable?" He slid down a bit further, put his head onto the pillow, and nodded slightly. Taking his pulse again she observed him, and then turned around and concentrated while taking an exact amount of the white liquid into the syringe. "I'm honoured that you came to ask for help.. although I don't like to be blindsided." He tried to smile. "I trust you." She nodded. "I know", she said, and injected the liquid into his veins.

Seconds later he was gone, as if someone had turned off a light. Watching people fall into the Quietanroot-induced sleep had always fascinated Poppy, and had made her take the special training in admistering and even brewing it, something she was sure Severus could not have known. Quietanroot was special, different from other narcotics, not only because it was the strongest one, but because it made people simply fall asleep. Other painkillers took away the pain, but Quietanroot took away everything - pain, feelings, mind. As if you'd say "Nox" in a room full of light, and suddenly find yourself in uttermost darkness.

A silent spell checked his heartbeat - sudden death in an Quietanroot-sleep was not uncommon - and she transformed the hard chair into a comfortable recliner and settled in for a long night. But she was certain that he needed a night of sleep more than she did, and although it was only a short time solution to knock him compeletely out, she hoped that they soon would find a better way to help him deal with the pain. She eyed the remaining liquid in the small vial. Never had she seen a Quientanrootextract so pure and perfectly brewed. This was not the work of a healer, or some drug dealer in a dark corner of Diagon Ally. The conclusion was easy, and she could have hit her hand against her face when she realized that he must have done it himself. Producing such a difficult and deadly potion with the uttermost precision was just too much like him. The image of his trembling hands came back to her mind, and she knew that he hadn't been capabale of brewing since weeks - so he had planed in advance. Brewing Quientanrootextract was a long and exhausting work, requiring uttermost attention and power from the wizward doing it. The finished product would last for years. How long had he kept it in stock, knowing that when he needed it, he wouldn't be capable of brewing it himself, and not trusting anyone? That was the way his mind worked, his pure cold logic, even when his own phsiycal demise was concerend.

Again she checked his heartbeat, and was relieved to find it soft, but steady. Maybe there was still a way. Maybe they could save him, or at least grant him some peace, just for a short while. Maybe it wasn't over just yet. A softly muttered "nox" let the lights vanish.

Darkness fell, and the room was calm.

* * *

25.01.2011


End file.
